1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic component, and in particular to a multi-layer ceramic capacitor and a production method thereof.
2. Description of the Related Art
The multi-layer ceramic capacitor (MLCC) is an electronic component formed by stacking several layers of capacitors, and performs various functions such as blocking DC signals, bypassing, and frequency resonance, etc. With the gradual expansion of the portable terminal market due to the personalization of electronic products, the multi-layer ceramic capacitor is becoming smaller and lighter.
Recently, the array type multi-layer ceramic capacitor is being used, in which several multi-layer ceramic capacitors are placed on a chip in the form of an array. As the array type multi-layer ceramic capacitor may replace multiple multi-layer ceramic capacitors, it can reduce mounting area, time, and cost, when compared to using multi-layer ceramic capacitors individually.
In prior art, the array type multi-layer ceramic capacitor is produced by a process of printing electrode paste on a green sheet by a printing technique such as screen printing, flexo printing, and gravure printing, etc., sintering at high temperatures after stacking in multiple layers and cutting, and then coating and sintering the external electrode for plating.
Here, since the internal electrode is printed over the printed dielectric sheet, interlayer gaps are formed when stacking multiple layers of dielectric sheets due to the thickness of the internal electrodes. In FIG. 1, dielectrics 110 and internal electrodes 120 are illustrated in a cross sectional view of an array type multi-layer ceramic capacitor, wherein interlayer gaps g are formed due to the thickness of the internal electrodes 120 between the dielectrics 110. To overcome this problem of interlayer gaps, methods of reducing the thickness of internal electrodes may be proposed, but there is a limit to how much the thickness of internal electrodes may be reduced.
Also, the production process of array type multi-layer ceramic capacitors comprises casting, printing, stacking, compressing, cutting, polishing and external electrode processes, as described above. Thus, when the dielectric sheets are not properly joined, a problem of delamination occurs, wherein each layer of the dielectric sheets are separated. Further, as internal electrodes and external electrodes are generated by separate processes, a problem occurs of poor contact between the internal electrodes and the external electrodes.